At 17:28 -0000 22/10/1998, Wade H. Reeser wrote:

>I think it is a stretch to call modern animals "very" different and "very"
>un-paleo.

On the contrary, I think calling modern farmed animals "very" different
from their paleo counterparts is an understatement. I suggest these animals
are "unrecognisably" different.

Consider the fat content of Bison, Caribou and domestic beef.

                     Bison     Caribou    Beef      Beef trimmed to 1/4" fat
Protein              21.620%   22.630%    17.320%  18.240%
Total lipid (fat)     1.840%    3.360%    24.050%  19.240%

This is the most lean item of beef I could locate:

Beef, flank, separable lean only, trimmed to 0in fat, choice, raw
Protein                   20.310%
Total lipid (fat)          7.440%

The difference between wild boar and pork is nothing short of astounding.

                         Wild boar  Pork
Protein                  21.510%    13.910%
Total lipid (fat)         3.330%    35.070%


Compare even the difference in fat content between wild rabbit and recently
domesticated rabbit. There can only be minimal differences between the
genetic make-up of these rabbits, as they have only been domesticated in
recent years. Yet there is already a 100% increase in fat content, possibly
due to the increased food intake, and lower amount of exercise required in
foraging.

                         Rabbit, wild   Rabbit, domesticated
Protein                  21.790%        20.050%
Total lipid (fat)         2.320%         5.550%


In each of these cases the proportion of different types of fatty acids has
hardly changed. It is just that the quantities of fatty acids has increased
dramatically.

I don't believe it's possible to eat a paleo diet unless you consume game
animals. This is rather easy here in Australia, as kangaroo meat is readily
available. In the U.S. I imagine game meat is available, but harder to find.
I wonder if it is available at all in Europe?

Yours sincerely,
Richard Archer.

p.s. the data is from the USDA Nutrient Database.
     http://www.nal.usda.gov/fnic/foodcomp/Data/SR12/sr12.html